All in 'ghoulish' fun

Halloween pumpkin and decoration contest generates hundreds of dollars for charity, marks end of 2011 SECC

The day started out rather gray and gloomy, but the dim light in the Atrium was just fine for the occasion. Jack-o’-lanterns glowed from their perches, serving as an eerie complement to the harvest hay bales, haunted house displays and Halloween decorations lined up in a neat row.

The Oct. 28 Halloween Pumpkin & Decoration Contest & Silent Auction — featuring 14 entries from the Texas A&M Health Science Center Baylor College of Dentistry community — collectively generated $445 and marked the dental school’s last event of the 2011 State Employee Charitable Campaign.

As students, faculty and staff perused the entries, they voted for their favorite items by dropping coins and dollars into jars. Others placed silent auction bids by writing their names and dollar amounts on sheets next to the items.

With just a few minutes left until noon, silent auction participants lingered near their desired pumpkins, masks and trinkets. Once the winning bidders were determined, they shuffled off with their Halloween decorations, and the votes — measured by counting the money in each item’s jar — were tabulated.

Taryn Walker, assistant registrar in the Office of the Registrar and Graduate Admissions, won the contest with her entry titled “Haunted House.” She opted to donate all proceeds to the American Cancer Society.

Here’s a look at some other festive entries from the day, in photos.

Baylor College of Dentistry raised $19,588.35, which is more than half of Texas A&M Health Science Center's goal of $34,000 for the 2011State Employee Charitable Campaign.

Interested in giving to the State Employee Charitable Campaign? Automatic payroll deduction for calendar year 2012 via SSO-HRConnect is no longer available, but you can always make contributions to the charity of your choice until fall 2012, when the campaign kicks off again.